THE breast cancer drug Herceptin was today approved for use on the NHS, under draft guidance issued by the Government's health watchdog.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommended the drug for people with early stage HER2-positive breast cancer, except where there were concerns about the woman's heart function.
A Holmfirth woman was prescribed Herceptin in her fight against breast cancer.
Mrs Karen Gibson, a 47-year-old mother-of-two, was diagnosed with cancer more than a year ago and underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy before being prescribed the drug.
Health officials in Huddersfield had originally chosen not to prescribe it for treatment for the early stages of breast cancer.
The new guidance is still open to consultation and a final version will be issued early next month.
The move comes just two weeks after the drug was licensed by the European Union.
Herceptin is effective on the HER2-positive type of the disease, which affects 20% to 25% of women newly diagnosed with breast cancer.
Research published last October showed that the drug cut the risk of disease coming back in women with early-stage HER2 by 46%.
Clinical trials have shown that women taking Herceptin have an 80.6% chance of being alive after three years without recurrence of any cancer.
This compares to 74% for women on a course of treatment other than Herceptin.
